The number of top-level staff at medium and large hedge fund managers in the UK has fallen by almost a quarter so far this year, as firms have looked to cut overhead costs and the brightest stars favoured going it alone.

During the first nine months of the year, the number of senior UK-based investment and sales professionals at large and medium-sized hedge funds fell from 1288 to 979.This is according to figures from corporate finance firm IMAS Corporate Advisors, which looked at a selection of 70 funds with staff registered at the UK Financial Services Authority.